One of the first things taught to wannabe journalists on how to compose a story of any kind is to state the important information first then go down in level of importance like an inverted triangle.
All the important information is presented first then the “not so important” information is trickled down throughout the story.
So why is it in the case of Alfonso Alarcon-Nunez that his ethnicity and legal status was the first information stated in an article by NBC.
Alarcon-Nunez is charged of exploiting his job as an Uber driver to rape and rob multiple women.
Mexicans have always had one of the most heavily stereotyped cultures in the United States with our “President” even referring this ethnic group as rapists.
Far too often in news stories we see or hear the reporter disclose immediately the ethnicity of the suspect when introducing the story.
That information should not matter to us?
Frankly, the survivors do not care if their attacker was Mexican or not.
A better question should not be about his race but about how Uber should improve their regulations for those who want to register as one of their drivers.
Because honestly this is not the first reported case of an Uber driver taking advantage of their passengers, we have all heard the horror stories, our mother’s strict warning against relying on an Uber or Lyft or any ride service for transportation.
So why has Uber not taken any preventative measures?
Why is the media not focusing on this?
A source in the article referred to the company and its lenient regulations but only towards the end of the piece.
Frankly, those who consume media should not give a flying fuck whether he was Mexican, African or Filipino.
Race does not determine prevalency to a certain act of debauchery.
Imagine someone reading the paper going “oh, he’s a rapist, he must be Mexican, you know rape runs in their blood, they are related to the Aztecs, you know that right?”
And someone responding, “oh, that is so true, makes sense then” in response to Dylan’s ignorant ass or whatever white boy name this person may possess.
Racist comments are already present on NBC’s tweet of the article.
Comments that would have never been composed at the hands of ignorant racists if it wasn’t for the unnecessary declaration of the suspect’s ethnicity.
Bad enough bullying is already running rampant among the slide and monkey bars of an elementary school, the last thing we need is another ten year-old committing suicide because another child decided to refer to them as a rapist simply because of the color of their skin, because the other child has already had that negative view ingrained in their small, underdeveloped mind that absorbs everything they see and hear, especially in mainstream media.
Yeah, media, let’s make it harder for kids to survive elementary school by making an ethnicity a negative trait.
Might as well bring the racial slur “spic” back into the picture at the rate we are going.
It is unfortunate enough to have a man in office who has been captured on record as referring to Mexicans as “rapists” and is essentially a racist himself.
And the rate of hate crimes on the rise in the U.S.
The last thing this country and its diverse population needs is an estate whose job it is to inform the community effectively and accurately to do the exact opposite.
NBC should have put more attention on how Uber plans to change its regulations rather than the status and ethnicity of the suspect.
It does not matter who the assailant was, he is not worth being humanized, what should have been the main focus instead of race should have been about ride service reform so this unfortunate and traumatic event will never happen to another person again.
